Readings for 2/12

The first article by Jennifer Eastman Atteberry analyzed the storytelling by rural Indiana native Homer Spriggs. Homer Spriggs had many stories and told them all in a specific style and diction. "Mr. Spriggs stories are remarkable in their narrative detail and dialogue, both of which work towards a clear story line, a carefully located setting, and character presentation." (Atteberry, 52) Mr. Spriggs told his stories in a very specific deliberate manner. His stories moved from action to action using very little adjectives to describe the setting. He used repetition by using the word "and" to move through the story creating rhythm. When a character spoke in his stories, he took on their persona and said their lines. These techniques made it more entertaining to the listener and allowed Mr. Spriggs to tell stories quickly.
This article illustrates the fact that storytelling is an art. We all have friends that are terrible story tellers. Their stories take 15 minutes to tell and meander back and forth in time and plots. A good storyteller like Mr Spriggs is able to tell a great entertaining story that is quick and to the point. You are able to get a sense of the character, the setting, and the plot in a matter of minutes. He does this, as said above, in very specific ways. This is an art that was passed down to him from his father, which according to him had many more stories than he has.
The second article by Gary Alan Fine gives us a look inside the world of amateur mushroom hunters. Mushroom hunters are a folk group. One way that they are a folk group is their use of personal narratives to create a community bond and separate themselves from people not in their group. The first set of stories were esoteric stories. They mainly told of certain trips hunting for mushrooms. The stories can be categorized as "fish stories." Many of the stories were competitive. They told of finding the biggest mushroom, or the best spot where many mushrooms grow. These stories held meaning to those that are in the group, but meant little to an outsider who may hear them. The other set of stories were exoteric stories about people outside the group that differentiated mushroom hunters from the "normal people." The stories were based on the ignorance of most people to the treasures that grow in their yard. They also differentiated amateur mushroom hunters from professional mycologists. The professionals took the fun out of mushroom hunting by being too techincal.
This article shows how personal narratives can be used in a folk group to strengthen its identity. The stories formed bonds between members of the group, and created separation from people outside the group.

Questions:
1. Do personal narratives have to be 100% true? If not, what makes them different from legends?
2. Why do think so much competetion existed between mushroom hunters? What purpose does it serve in terms of a folk group?